What is online?
Simply stated, this is the delivery of courses and programs through the computer, using computer communications to link faculty and students. This process can occur between two computers in the same town, in the same state, or between computers on opposite sides of the earth. All students in this environment become actively involved in interactive learning groups.  

How does online work?
The process begins with you enrolling in an online course. Then two weeks before the course you will receive basic login instructions as well as information on how to download the Blackboard manual: which will explain how the course will be run. As a student, you are expected to participate in your virtual classroom regularly. This includes participation, discussion, submission of regular assignments as required, and participation in group activities (which are an integral part of your learning process). Do not be confused. Courses have regularly scheduled beginning and ending dates and there are deadline dates assigned for your classroom activities (including your homework, assigned readings, and even virtual classroom discussion requirements). Your online instructor will give your very detailed instructions to guide you through this process so you should never be in the dark about what is required of you.  

What is Moodle®?
The Moodle system is an Internet-based system designed to allow students to participate in classes in an online format. It allows students to send and receive information from their instructor, the classroom, other students or groups of students. Moodle is accessed via the Internet and is used to manage the information you send and receive to and from your class. There is no software to install. You will however be required to have an Internet Service Provider (ISP) and an email account.

What is a virtual classroom?
The virtual classroom is the common meeting area for all students assigned to class online. Each classroom has a unique name. For example, an online New Testament Theology class might have the name BB202Jan2002. Only students taking that particular class have access to the virtual classroom, thus ensuring privacy for a group of students in a course.  

I have trouble setting a schedule that requires me to be at the computer at the same time every day. How does your system allow me to attend class while others are not present?
Good question. You must remember that this form of education is what the experts call “asynchronous.” This means what you do is neither time nor place dependent. You “go online” to read lectures, participate in “threaded discussion,” and possibly complete exams; many of the assignments and exercises required in online courses will still be completed off-line using word processing software. When you “login” to the system, you send your comments and homework—the computer, using web based technology, deposits it where others can see, or to a personal email address which you have designated. Students have 24 hour-a-day, seven day-a-week access to their classroom.   Is asynchronous discussion really the way to go? For learning in the classroom, the more traditional face-to-face discussion seems more appropriate.

While almost everyone who tries this style of learning likes it, we find that it best suits those who have very busy work and personal lives. One of the barriers prohibiting many busy working adults from going to college is the requirement to be in a particular place at a particular time. Remember that online programs have been specifically designed to take advantage of technology. We have not attempted to replicate a model that works well in a face-to-face traditional environment. The online delivery method gives you the same results—but in a far more efficient manner! Also remember that in a “real” classroom, students are often allowed to sit without participated. In the online environment, this is not possible. Everyone must participate.

It seems to me like not talking directly to your fellow students or teacher would affect the learning process. Is this true?
Again, absolutely not. The primary problems associated with asynchronous communication come from the initial difficulty the student has in getting oriented to the new delivery method. Once acquainted with the process, most students relate an improved learning situation occurs. Think about this for a minute. Everyone in your class has a different schedule, a different family situation, and a different play/relaxation schedule. It is very difficult and inconvenient to get everyone together into one classroom without rearranging everyone’s lives. The same is true for online. If we demanded that everyone dial into his or her class at the same time, we have effectively replicated the classroom online! That would defeat the purpose of this new leaning situation. When communication is asynchronous, any student can participate anytime it is convenient to do so, whether that is midnight, or 4:30 in the morning, in a motel room while traveling on business, or on an airplane at 30,000 feet. Online students have an opportunity to take as much as they need to compose their response. The material and concepts are approached at an individual rate. Out students and faculty find that a level of depth and breadth can be achieved in asynchronous communication, which is more difficult to achieve with “real-time” or “chat-mode” text-based communication.   

What does a typical class look like online?
Typically, courses are six weeks in length. In the first week, the online instructor sends any introductory information on the week’s topic, sends an introductory lecture to begin the study process for the week and assigns a homework or paper. To stimulate discussions, the instructor would also typically include discussion questions related to the topic at the end of his/her lecture. As the week progresses, you work on your readings, your assignments and you participate in classroom discussion just as you would in a traditional classroom setting. However, you use the computer to participate in the class discussions, to carry on private discussions with classmates or your teacher, to ask questions and to receive any feedback. When you assignments are due (you usually have a specific deadline for your required work during the week), you send them to the instructor of to the classroom online. Instructors grade your papers, provide feedback and comments, and keep you informed of your status weekly.   

Is an online course easier than an on-ground class?
Actually, if everything is going well, they’re about the same. The focus of the work is different, however. For example, all of your focus in an online course is toward reading and writing. This is not the case in a classroom setting where part of your attention is to listening and observation. Aural learners may have difficulty in accepting this more “visual” learning process.
  
I worry about privacy. Sometimes I want to talk to the instructor in private, and I know I would want to do that with my fellow students. Is this possible in the online environment?
It certainly is. Remember, essentially, Moodle is a conferencing system designed as an expanded electronic mail system. Students use their private email account and are also assigned to virtual classrooms for their courses. Only students with an “invitation” to that classroom will be able to join in the discussion or view course materials. You may, of course, send and receive private mail to your instructor or any other member of the online community at any time.   

What if I don’t want to participate? In a regular classroom, I can just sit in the back of the room and listen.
True enough. If this is the case with you, then you do not want to enroll in an online course. You see, in an online class, all students have an equal opportunity to participate in the discussions. In fact, if you don’t participate, the instructor will not even know you are there! The online environment effectively demands that every student participate to succeed. For this reason, online classes are much smaller than on-ground classrooms. A typical class may have 15-16 students. Here is another interesting side effect for this learning environment. You do not have the capability to determine certain factors such as race, handicap, or personal appearance. Sometimes ever gender is difficult to determine in the online environment.   

Isn’t online education just a glorified correspondence course?
Not at all. Correspondence course are most often self-paced and self-study arrangements involving written communication between a student and an instructor. Our online courses focus strongly on interaction. The things that make the differences here are group activities, participation in group discussions, information sharing…to include experience sharing, debate among students—even student and faculty, and a myriad number of social interactions that take place during the course.

I'm having trouble with Moodle. Where do I get help?
You can get help by opening http://www.moodle.org and creating an account.  There is an extensive knowledgebase available to you.  You can also send email to Ephraim Dean at edean@montreat.edu.

What kind of computer do I need?
The following hardware and software are minimum specifications to work with the Blackboard application:

Platform: Windows 2000 or greater; MacOS X
Hardware: 256 MB of RAM, 1 G of free disk space
Software: Microsoft Word, Adobe Acrobat Reader
Browser: Any recent browser
NOTE: JavaScript & Cookies must be enabled
Broadband access is recommended

Definition of terms used when talking about online courses:

Asynchronous: In computer programming, asynchronous (from the Greek meaning “not at the same time”) pertains to processes that proceed independently of each other.   

Browser: A browser is an application program that provides a way to look at and interact with all the information on the World Wide Web. The word “browse” seems to have originated prior to the Web as a generic term for user interfaces that let you browse text files online.   

Chat: On the Internet, chat or chatting is talking to other people who are using the Internet at the same time you are. Asynchronous communication is not considered chat.  

Discussion board: A discussion board is a general term for any online “bulletin board” where you can leave and expect to see responses to messages you have left. Or you can just read the board. Bulletin board services were invented for this purpose (as well as to allow for the exchange of uploaded/downloaded files). 

Microsoft Internet Explorer: Microsoft Internet Explorer (MSIE) is the graphical World Wide Web browser that is provided with the Microsoft Windows 95, 98 and NT operating systems.  

Netscape (Netscape Communicator or Netscape Navigator): While “Netscape” can be short for the company called “Netscape Communications,” it is most frequently used as the short form for “Netscape Navigator,” the most widely used World Wide Web browser.   

Thread: A thread is a sequence of responses to an initial message posting. This enables you to follow or join an individual discussion from among the many that may be there. A thread is usually shown graphically as an initial message and successive messages “hung off” the original message.

Source: www.whatis.com